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Make up air in the kitchen

Hello,

I have just finished my kitchen remodel and install a Wolf 48" gas range and a 48" 1100 CFM range hood. The problem I am having is that when I turn on the range hood...my family room smells like burned wood from the fireplace. To my knowledge, it seems like my house is pretty air tight and the range hood is pulling so hard, that the make up air is coming from the chimeny.

Is there any way to make or buy something get get more air into my house?

Are you sure it's an 1100 cfm hood? That's a fair amount of air. I'm assuming this isn't a commercial kitchen? You're probably right about the chimney effect . If your house is air tight, that hood needs to get air from somewhere. First thing I'd do is find out why you have so much exhaust and if you could reduce that by at least half or better. Have you tried closing off your fireplace to confirm whether or not that's where the air is being drawn from?

Yes, I am sure it's 1100 CFM(Jenn Air #JXT9048CDP). The damper of the fireplace is closed but I guess it's not air tight. I don't think it would be wise the unplug one of the fans, if I am using the griddle or the char broiler...they will generate alot of smoke.

I tried your window test and since I have sliding windows, I basically taped a Scott towel to the screen and fired up the range hood. The Scott towel lifted to about 60 degrees. With the fan off and the AC off the Scott towel was flat on the screen.

chandleraz_guy, your suggestion to get a pro here would be wise. Basically in Quebec, the utility companies pay $150.00 of the bill to get a company to do pressure test. They seal the house and attach a fan to the front door. Since it costs $300 and I get $150.00 kick back...I think it would be wise to get them here and tell me all the problems as far as air leaks.

Thanks to everyone for answering my question. But is there a unit I can buy to generate more make up air?

Most city codes on commercial kitchens require you to put back at least 80%of what is exhausted. I believe you are going to have to add a forced air make up with in 80% of the rated exhaust specs to stop any infiltration from the fire place. It needs to be brought in with a arms distance from the hood to be drawn back up the hood.

Most city codes on commercial kitchens require you to put back at least 80%of what is exhausted. I believe you are going to have to add a forced air make up with in 80% of the rated exhaust specs to stop any infiltration from the fire place. It needs to be brought in with a arms distance from the hood to be drawn back up the hood.

Thanks for the info. Can make up air be drawn from the attic? My kitchen is right below the attic.

It would be best to draw it from outside the space of the house. If you draw from the attic space and have your HVAC unit in the attic it could effect how it drafts and give you problems during the winter with your heater.

For the money make sure you get a blower door test, pressure readings from all the rooms with doors closed, and flowhood test run for each of the major rooms. This should give you an overall picture of your airflow and any issues--I had it done not long ago and it was great piece of mind.

Do you have HVAC return grills in each bedroom as many people (including me) have only 1 which creates a problem whenever those doors are closed.

Originally Posted by Dante1

Simpleman,

I tried your window test and since I have sliding windows, I basically taped a Scott towel to the screen and fired up the range hood. The Scott towel lifted to about 60 degrees. With the fan off and the AC off the Scott towel was flat on the screen.

chandleraz_guy, your suggestion to get a pro here would be wise. Basically in Quebec, the utility companies pay $150.00 of the bill to get a company to do pressure test. They seal the house and attach a fan to the front door. Since it costs $300 and I get $150.00 kick back...I think it would be wise to get them here and tell me all the problems as far as air leaks.

Thanks to everyone for answering my question. But is there a unit I can buy to generate more make up air?

I'm constantly amazed at how ignorant remodeling contractors are about the affect these 1000+ cfm range hoods, that are all the rage these days, have on the home.
IMO, your remodeling contractor should have taken this into account from the beginning.

That is a heck of a lot of air that needs to be made up, and will need to be a forced makeup air system. I'm no ERV expert, but I haven't seen any that will handle the kind of airflow you will need.

IMO, you really don't need that much exhaust, probably not even half that much...